car question just not a dodge

[Drache]

Does anyone know exactly where the crash sensor is on a 2004 Ford Focus? Friend and I got into an accident, totaled his car, and the airbags didn't go off. We want to look into it.

[Charger-Bodie]

It takes a certain amount of inertia to set them off . What did they hit?

[ChgrSteve67]

Looks like you missed the bumper and drove under a truck or trailer of some kind.

Co-worker of mine hit a flatbed truck and tore the hood and top of the motor off without setting off the airbags.

[Drache]

It takes a certain amount of inertia to set them off . What did they hit?

WE (I was the front passenger) hit the ass end of a brand new F350 who was stopped dead in the highway..... 

[Blown70]

I thought they were in the bumper,,, meaning if the impact was as high as that seems it may not have?  I certainly could be wrong

[Charger-Bodie]

How fast ? aprox.

[Drache]

How fast ? aprox.

approx about 70kmh

[Charger-Bodie]

Id say if it was a little lower and or a litlle faster you probably would have been eating bag.

[Drache]

Sadly I think its true, although new cars are supposed to operate due to g-force to stop this sort of problem. I hit a rock wall doing 50kmh in my own car a couple years back and set the airbags off, it was only a '92.

The thing that got us thinking was this car was bought brand new off the lot in 2004 and rear ended which caused both airbags to deploy. Ford reset the airbags and then sold the car off the lot to my friend last year. We just want to make sure the damn airbags were supposed to go off and yet didn't.

[Joshua]

The sensors are behind the bumper.....
A freind rolled his Explorer and the bags didn't go off either....I parted the rig out and right there, behind the bumper, were the sensors....two, @ at the bumper mounts.

[Charger-Bodie]

The sensors are behind the bumper.....
A freind rolled his Explorer and the bags didn't go off either....I parted the rig out and right there, behind the bumper, were the sensors....two, @ at the bumper mounts.

They are actually in lots of various differant place from one car to the next.

[Joshua]

They are actually in lots of various differant place from one car to the next.

Yeah....I know....but since the car in question was in a FRONT end collision...I assume he wanted to know WHERE in the front....
They are behind the bumper on Fords.....

[Drache]

another question is though what year were g-force sensors put into the new fords? This was a 2004 Ford focus....

[Just 6T9 CHGR]

More importantly hopefully no one was hurt....

[Drache]

More importantly hopefully no one was hurt....

dislocated riibs on the driver, torn muscles in my knees and back for me.

[ChgrSteve67]

The thing that got us thinking was this car was bought brand new off the lot in 2004 and rear ended which caused both airbags to deploy. Ford reset the airbags and then sold the car off the lot to my friend last year. We just want to make sure the damn airbags were supposed to go off and yet didn't.

I think I would contact a lawyer and ask them how to go about having the car inspected.
I believe the airbags should have deployed.  It may turn out the air bags are defective, installed incorrectly or non existent.

[chgr500]

Does anyone know exactly where the crash sensor is on a 2004 Ford Focus? Friend and I got into an accident, totaled his car, and the airbags didn't go off. We want to look into it.

Is that yours hanging on the top RS of your front bumper...here's the normal procedure for removal of the front crash sensor...

Remove the radiator right-hand support bracket retaining bolts and lower the right-hand side of the radiator.

Remove the radiator air deflector.

Detach the crash sensor from the radiator grille opening panel.

Remove the crash sensor.
Disconnect the crash sensor electrical connector.

[Drache]

Ok if the senor is a g-force type and if its near the top of the rad then those bags should have gone off. Either way we are headed to ford tomorrow and show them the pics and simply ask "why".

[Back N Black]

Was the light on in the dash for the Air bags" Warning" that there is a problem. There is usually a sensor up front and one on the passenger side floor. Both Sensors have to be tripped in order for the bag to deploy. The one on the Passenger floor is the inertia switch, its basically a steel ball that roll forward and makes contact.

[Drache]

Was the light on in the dash for the Air bags" Warning" that there is a problem. There is usually a sensor up front and one on the passenger side floor. Both Sensors have to be tripped in order for the bag to deploy. The one on the Passenger floor is the inertia switch, its basically a steel ball that roll forward and makes contact.

You can't turn the airbags off in that car so the light should have been on. If it wasn't then Ford is liable since they were the ones who reset the airbags from the previous owner and stated they were in working condition when my friend purchased the car.

[Drache]

Friend just called from the Ford dealership, they are going to look into who did the work on redoing the airbags in the Focus....

[chgr500]

The air bag warning lamp should prove out after the ignition is turned out....should it not illuminate or it flashes or stays on there is a problem with the system.....the inertia switch is a fuel shutoff device...mostly for rollovers and impact...hopefully no fuel no fire..

[Silver R/T]

as a collision repair tech I can tell you that they didn't go off cause sensors behind bumper cover were not disturbed.

[Drache]

as a collision repair tech I can tell you that they didn't go off cause sensors behind bumper cover were not disturbed.

Wrong again Silver, the 2004 Ford Focus has electromechanical senors not collision sensors so they should go off due to the decrease in force, not to mention the 2004 Ford Focus' sensor is near the hoodlatch and top of the rad, not behind the bumper which is confirmed by someone at ford.

A commonly used sensor is the electromechanical "gas dampened ball and tube" design. The sensor is nothing more than a small tube with a switch at one end and a gold plated steel ball at the other, held in place by a small magnet. When the sensor receives a hard enough jolt to knock the ball loose from the magnet, the ball rolls down the tube, hits the switch and closes the circuit. The tube is slanted upward so the ball should return to its original position after an impact.

[2Gunz]

From the pictures it looks like you hit and gradually slowed down (if you can consider 4ft gradual heh)

as the car got stuffed under the truck.


I would suspect the airbags didnt deploy because you didnt hit and bounce off an object

like a "normal" collision.

Anyway I hope you are ok.